The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1887-03-05
Our State Capital Correspondence.
Special to tho CARBoS ADVOCATE.

MARCH ?, 1887.
There has appeared in some of our papers
during the past week an interesting episode
concerning the early marriage and divorce
OF n daughter of ex Governor Curtin, which
in effect is about as follows:
One of the legislative committees, re-
Gently, in delving among the archives OF
the House of Representatives after traces
of an old committee report, came across a
document which possesses a romantic in
terest and recalls a somewhat exciting in.
cident of social life at the State Capital in
ye old times, which never got into print,
and was known but to limited circle at
the time. The document is the original
House bill No. ?, of the legislative session
of 1866, the introduction of which at the
first session at which the House was fully
organized was the first act in the legislative
career of Matthew Stanley Quay, now State
Treasurer. 1t was a bill to divorce Mary
| Wilson Mcconnell from her husband Henry
LLOYD Mcconnell. Mrs. Mcconnell was
the young and handsome daughter Of the
then Governor Curtin, and thereby hangs
the romance of this story. Through the
efforts of Air. Quay and Senator Lowry this
divorce bill, without going to the commit
tee, passed both Houses of the Legislature
in less than two hours. This was on the
10th day of January, 1866. Mr.. Quay,
whose fine hand was seen in the railroading
of the Philadelphia Magistrates bill through
some weeks ago, evidently began to get on
/ to the rapid Legislative methods very soon
| in his political career. But the romance.
| Miss Mary Wilson Curtin had just budded
/ into her teens when her father was elected
/ Governor of Pennsylvania, and was but a
mere school girl when she came to Harris
! burg TO liye at the Executive Mansion.
/ She was sprightly, good-natured and had
charming manners; by 1865 she had de-
yeloped into one of the handsomest and
most entertaining as well as the most
| sought after of all the buds in society here
and in Philadelphia, where she was we'll
known and is still remembered as a belle.
! One evening at an entertainment at the
! Executive Mansion she met young Captain
Henry Lloyd McCopncll, a dashing officer
of the army, who was taken i'll during the
reception and was kindly taken care of by
the Governors family. This led to frequent
meetings between Miss Curtin and young
Mcconnell, who was fine looking fellow,
but of no particular social status, and
would not have been listened to by the
! Governor as a Suitor for the hand of his
I daughter. But Cupid and the Captain
shoulder-straps played havoc with the
young lady's heart. The result was that
one eafternoon pair of timid lovers appeared
in the Office of Old Squire Mclaughlin and
asked to be married. The young lady was
yeiled; the Justice did not dream that she
was the Governors daughter, whom he
knew by sight as one of the pretty girls OF
town. He readily agreed to perform the
ceremony; his little nephew, who was pres,
ent, witnessed the marriage certificate
The young lady gave her name as Miss
Mary Wilson Curtin, with a strong accent
upon the last syllable. The oil Squire
and his nephew are both dead, but there i,
still living witness to this ceremony in
Hamburg-Wiliam Mclaughlin, the old
'Squire's son, who was home from the waI
ON furlough, and happened to be in the
office at the Time. ."Capiain Mcconnell, -
said Mclaughlin, in relating the story OF
the marriage, twas a very handsome fel
low; but l guess that's about all there was
in him."
The Captain walked down the street t1
the Executive Mansion and left his bride al
the door, going to his owGquarters, presum,
ably to let the storm blow eyer. The GOV,
ernor, as was to have been expected, was
in towering rage when his daughter re-